Oregon Public Broadcasting

The future of the Boeing Company in Washington State is once again a growing topic of concern.

There’s a long list of reasons Boeing might look elsewhere to build its next generation of airplanes: The company is now headquartered in Chicago; the recent machinists strike; the cost of doing business in Washington; and the fact Southern states are aggressively courting Boeing. Olympia correspondent Austin Jenkins reports.

Boeing's Everett Plant

I’m standing in the world’s largest building by volume. This is Boeing’s Everett plant and this is where the 787 Dreamliner is being built.

At some point down the road – maybe later this year – Boeing will have to decide where to build its second assembly line for the 787 and the big question is will it be here in Washington State or out of state.

Aaron Reardon: “To be in the position we’re in right now with the second line of the 787 frankly is embarrassing.”

That’s Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon, a Democrat.

Boeing’s Everett plant is in his county. Reardon is clearly frustrated there’s even a question about Boeing’s future here.

Back in 2003, the legislature passed a goody bag of tax breaks and other incentives in order to land the first Dreamliner assembly line. But five years later Reardon says Washington still must compete with other parts of the country.

Aaron Reardon: “There’s no reason the state needs to be in the top quartile for costs associated with doing business. We can maintain our quality workforce and the quality benefits we provide our employees, but we don’t have to be in the top quartile.”

In a speech last November in downtown Seattle, Boeing Commercial Airplanes CEO Scott Carson delivered a warning heard round the region.

Scott Carson: “We’ve all heard the cliché about real estate, but location is important for businesses as well. For a global company in a highly competitive industry a supportive business environment is critical to our success. And location is a choice.”

That one line in a long speech served as a wake-up call to Boeing stakeholders. People like Linda Lanham who heads the Aerospace Futures Alliance.

Linda Lanham: “To me this is like déjà vu in 2003. I mean always trying. I mean my career has been trying to keep Boeing here in Washington.”

Lanham – a former machinist’s union lobbyist - says the competition to woo Boeing is heating up. States like Kansas, the Carolinas and Alabama are building aerospace worker training facilities – something Washington doesn’t have.

She adds that last year’s 58-day machinist’s strike didn’t help Washington’s cause. 

Linda Lanham: “I’m not saying that anybody’s to blame – but I think it certainly brought an awareness to everyone that we have to ramp up our efforts.”

The Machinist’s union defends the strike and blames Boeing for letting it drag on so long.

Union spokeswoman Connie Kelleher adds that one of Washington’s strongest advantages over other states is having one of the most experienced aerospace workforces in the world. Nevertheless she admits her members share the jitters about the future.

Connie Kelleher: “I think everyone in this region has been concerned since Boeing headquarters moved out of Seattle that signaled a change in the company and whether they say you have to earn the next one or they’ll put it out for a Request for Proposal you have to take that very seriously.”

There’s enough concern about Boeing’s future that stakeholder groups recently called something of an emergency meeting to begin strategizing about how to keep Boeing here in the Northwest. And Governor Chris Gregoire recently appointed a special advisor on aerospace issues.

State Representative Mark Ericks, a Democrat who serves on an informal aerospace taskforce, says the onus right now is on Boeing.

Mark Ericks: “They should be prepared to tell us what they want, what they need and we should be prepared to try and work with them to achieve what they need to make that happen.”

Boeing has already told lawmakers that Workers Compensation and Unemployment Insurance reform top its agenda. Also Boeing has warned majority Democrats in the legislature not to pass labor’s number one priority bill this year: a so-called worker privacy act.

Senate Republican Leader Mike Hewitt believes that pro-union legislation like that combined with the machinist’s strike send a message to Boeing chiefs in Chicago that Washington is not business friendly.

Hewitt says Washington can’t afford to lose Boeing’s assembly lines of the future because of the ripple effect it would have on the Northwest economy.

Mike Hewitt: “So for every job they create, every job they have it’s two and a half jobs on the outside and so the multiplier in this thing can be horrific if we don’t take care of this industry in this state.”

Back at Boeing’s Everett plant –David Reese, senior manager for visitor relations, cruises the factory floor in an airport-style electric cart.

David Reese: “We have around 30,000 people working in the Everett facility. We work two to three shifts per day depending on the activity level.”

It takes a visit here to understand why Boeing is so integral to the Northwest economy. The Everett plant is like a miniature city with a roof over the top. The place is so big workers use golf carts and bicycles to get around.

The worry isn’t just where future 787 Dreamliners will be built. What about all the other planes Boeing builds? Where will those assembly lines go in the future?